Machine for making and dispensing lather



Nov

F. ACKERMANN El AL MAHINE FOR MAKING AND DISPENSING LATHER IN VENTOR Filed Aug. 29, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet l Nov. l0 1925 1561,43?)

\ F. ACKERMANN ET AL l MACHINE FOR MAKING AND DISPENSING' LATHER Filed Aug. 29. 1'924 2 sheets-sheer' 2 Patented Nov. l0, 1925.

UNITED STATES- PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK ACKERMANN. MORRIS `LAN'GrI-IAU'S, AND HERMAN GOULD, 0F NEW YORK, N. Y.; SAID LANGHAUS ASSIGNOR TO SAID ACKERMANN AND SAID GOULD.

MACHINE Fon MAKING AND DIsPENsING LATHER.

Application led August 29, 1924. SerialNo. 734,855.l

To all whom it may concern:

Be 1t known that we, FRANK ACKERMANN, MORRIS LANGHAUS, and HERMAN GOULD, citi- Zens of the United States of America, resid- A ing at New York city, Bronx County, State of New York, have invented certain neuT and useful Improvements in Machines for Making and Dispensing Lather, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to machines for making and dispensing lather and in particular toa type adapted to be used in barber shops for producing at desiredperiods sufficient quantities .of lather for shaving purposes.

A particular object of the invention is to produce a machine which will mix a certain quantity of water and soap powder to produce a lather, and `from which the lather produced may be drawn at will.

A further obje/ct of the invention is to produce a machlne in which the mixing of the soap powder and water may be regulated and in which the desired thickness of lather may be regulated.

A further object of the invention is to provide in a machine of this character, means 'whereby the making ofv the lather will be entirely automatic, that is, when a fresh quantity of lather is needed a lever will be operated which will cause the mixing of the powder with a predetermined amount of water and the starting of an agitator which will produce the lather, and also a means for timing the movement of the agitator and automatically stopping it when the lather reaches the desired consistency.

A further object of the invention is to.

produce a machine in which the lather made will remain in its vWet consistent Astate for long periods of time, so that one mixture of` the lather maybe sufficient for a number of shaves, it being understood, of course, that.

Figure 1 isa top plan view of a machine.

constructed in accordance with our invenmovement of the agitator and controls the general operation of the machine. l

Figure 5 is a section taken through the timing pump to show the interior construction of the same and;

Figure 6 is a side elevation of a portion of the mixing tank showing the nozzle from which the prepared lather is discharged.

Referring to the drawings 'in detail 5 in-y dicates a base which may be of wood or other suitable material upon which is mounted the cover or housing 6, which may be made of polished metal ory other suitable material.

Within the housing and attached thereto we provide a frame 7 in which is supported a water tank 8, having disposed across the top thereof a suitable cross bar 9 which carries an upwardly extending sleeve 10, in the upper end of which is pivoted a water releasing cam arm 1l, the end of which within the sleeve 10 is provided with an extended portion 12, which engages the upper end of a valve stem 13; the valve stem being retained in raised position by a suitable spring 14 which surrounds said stem and. presses uplwardly against the collar 15. The lower end of the valve stem is provided' withga valve 16 which is adapted to seat in a suitable opening 117 in the bottom of the water tank. This opening provides an inlet from the main vwater tank 8 into .an auxiliary water tank 18 which is suitably fastened against the bottom of the water tank 8.' The auxiliary water tank 18 is open to atmosphere through the medium of '1a pipe 19,

which extends above the top of the water tank 8.

We may provide in the water tank 8 a suitable electric heater 20 made up of thc usual resistance coil 21, which is electrically connected to the prongs 22 fastened in the wall 6 of the housing.

The auxiliary water tank 18 is provided in its bottom with an opening 23 against which is adapted to seat valve 24, which is normally retained in the closed position by the coil sprin 25, which bears against .a cross bar 26 dlsposed in the auxiliary tank outlet 27, the latter being connected` to the mixing tank inlet 28 through the medium of an elbon7 29. The 'valve 24 is, oi course, provided with the usual valve stem which passes through the cross bar 26, and has its upper end extending into the auxiliary water tank 18 in position to be engaged by the lower end ofthe valve stem 13 when the water releasing cam arm 11 is operated.

rIt will be apparent that any pivoting of the cam arm 1l at its pivot point will cause a downwardmovement of the valve stem 13, which will cause the valve 16 to seat on the bottom of the water tank and will cause the valve 24 to o n, thus allowing water in the auxiliary tan 18 to run into the agitator lchamber 30, and at the same time, closing the opening 17 between the/main water tank 8 and said auxiliary tank. Thus the water in the auxiliary tank is suiicient for one mixing with a certain quantity of soap powder and when the arm 11 is releasedV the valve 24 closes the bottom of the auxiliary tank and allows valve 16 to open whereby l the auxiliary tank is again refilled. In

'ont

order lto regulate the amount of water that may be required, we provide an extension 31 on` the valve stem 13, said extension passing through the top of the housing 6 and carryin'gat its upper end a suitable knob 32 so that the valve stem 13 may be operated independently of the automatically operated lever 11.`

The housing is provided with a screw cap 33 in the top thereof immediately over. the main water tank 8 so that the tank can be vfilled with a supply of water.

The cam arm 11 is connected through the medium of arod 34 to the o ratin lever 35 which is disposed at one s1de of t e machine and is pivoted to a standard 36 supported on-the side wall of the housing 6, the ee endof said operating lever 35 normally held in raised position by a coil spring ,37. The free end of the lever 35 is adaplted to be engaged by a h ook 38 carried e upper end o the timing pump piston rod 39, the lower end of said piston rod being disposed within pump chamber 40 and carrying the piston 41 which makes contact with the inner wall' ofsaid chamber. This piston rod 39 as shown in Figure 5 is hollow in its lower-end and is adapted to receive the end of a guide pin 42 around which is Wound the spiral .spring 43, the 'end of the spring abutting against the bottom ofthe recess in the piston rod 39. The rod 42 extends into thepiston rod a sufiicient distance to guidevsame in its downward movement, and in order to further guide the piston 39 we provide a bracket 44-suitably attached to the side wall of the housing 6.

The piston rod is rovided in its hollow portion with a threaded opening 45 which receives loosel a screw 46 under t-he head of which is disposed a soft leather washer 47, it being apparent that this opening is used as an air inlet and when the air is exhausted in the lower end of the pump it will slowly seep through said opening and assist the spring 43 to gradually force the piston upwardly. K', lhe time necessary for the air to enter is regulated by the screw 46, as when it is tightened up the washer 47 will prevent the rapid entrance of air and allow the pistonY torise slowly so that any adjustment in time necessary for the piston to rise is provided by manipulating the screw 46.

The piston rod 39 is provided with an extension 48 which passes through a suitable slot 49 in the sidewall of the housing 6 and carries at its outer end a knob 50A which, as shown in Figure 4, is depressed to cause a downward mov ment of the piston 41 in the timing pump 0. The downward movement of the piston 39 will cause the hook 38 to draw down the operating lever 35 and when said operating lever is at its lower most position, it lwill be engaged by a free 'moving pivoted hook 50, and will be thus retained in its lower position.l A suitable dowel pin 51 on the piston 39 normally holds the hook in disengaged position relatively to the lever 35 when the piston rod is raised, so that'when the piston rod is pushed down, the lever 35 will pass under the'hook and be retained thereunder until the air escapes from the timing pump and allows said piston rod 39 to rise so that its dowel '51 engages the extended portion 52 of the hook to releasethe lever 354.

This operation of the lever 35 causes, as before stated, the regulation of the water through the medium of the rod 34 and lever 11.

The arm 35 has attached thereto in any suitable manner a curved'cam 53 which extends inwardly adjacent the free end of the leyer 35 to engage a roller 54 carried between the extended arms 55 of the powder plunger 56 which operates in a casing 57 to move the powder from beneath a suitable hopper 58 to the mixing cup or agitator chamber v30. The casing 57 is provided with a hopper receiving portion 59 into which is fitted the lower part of an outer hopper 58,l which isv .45 lnent and thus the amount-,of

beaded at itsupper end as at 60 to support an inner hopper 61, the inner hopper being the one which carries the soap powder as shown in Figure 2. The inner hopper is provided with oppositely disposed pin members 62 adjacent its lower end, the pins extending through the outer hopper 58 to be engaged by the arms 63. The lower ends of the arms 63 are pivoted -to the opposite sides of the powder plunger 56, the connecting pins passing through suitable slots 64 in the casing 57. Any movement of the powder plunger 56 will, of course, cause the agitation of the inner hopper 61 to loosen the powder which has a tendency to become caked. The end of the casing is projected to provide arms 65, which carry at their outer ends pins 66 to which is attached coil spring 67. The inner ends of the springs engage pins 68 which are fastened to the powder plunger 56 and operate in the slots 64.

It is apparent, therefore, that upon a downward movement of the free end of the lever 35 the cam 53 \will turn against the .roller 54 and cause the inward movement of the powder plunger 56, which will move the powder out of the bore 69 in the vframe 57 into the mixing cup 30. At the same time that the arm 35 isI movingdownwardly the water will be released and it too will pass into the mixing cup, togetherV with the powder. In order that the powder maybe regulated independently one of the pins 68 is projected through the wall of the casing 65 through a suitable slot and carries at its outer end a knob 70, which may be moved back and forth to operate the powder plunger, independently of. the cam 53. The movement' of the powder plunger 56 may be regulated by providing a slidable stop 71 inthe slot through which the plun er operator works, it being readily seen t at when the stop 71 is advanced, the powder' plunger will be limited in its return movepowder that will be projected into the mixmg chamber will be regulated.

The mixing chamber is held on the top of a suitable standard 7 0, under which is placed a motor 71A. The motor shaft extending up through the standard A and the bottom of the mixing tank 30 and carrying at its upper end the agitator hub 72, said Vhub being provided with blades 73, which churn up the mixture of powder and water to form a lather. Themixing chamber is 'properly insulated so that no water can find its wayI from the mixing chamber into the.

interior of they motor. The chamber 30 is provided adjacent its lower end with a discharge nozzle 74 (see Figure 6), the nozzle being bent so that the lather will not run out. In order to forcev the lather out use is made of a piston 75 which ts closely within the y chamber 30. and is carried on the lower end of an operating rod 76, the upper end of which passes through the top of the housing 5 and is provided with a suitable knob 77, which when pressed downwardly-,causes the piston 75 to move down and the lather to be discharged through the nozzle 74.

The water tank is provided with a suitable gage 7 7^. In order to start the motor at the proper time, we provide the contact 78 which is yieldably carried on the guide screw 79. which is held in a suitable libre block 8O carried on the end of a bracket 81, the latter being attached to the side wall of the housing 6.

The operating lever 35 is provided with a suitable pin 82, which engages the contact plate 78 when the lever reaches the limit of its downward movement. The screw I 83 which helps carry the plate 78 is connected to the motor through the medium of a wire 84 as is the pin 82 on the arm 85 by the wire 85. Thus, when the lever is at its downward limit the motor begins its operation, this operation beginning after the soap powder and water have been put into the chamber 30.

When the air has escaped from the timing pump 40, the hook will releasethe lever 35 and allow it to return to its normally raised position thereby breaking the motor circuit and allowing the auxiliary tank 18 to be lled with water, thus completing the cycle of operations necessary in the production of lather.V i

, It will be seen, therefore, that we have provided a machine which will automatically eed a combination of soap powder and water to a mixing chamber where the same will be agitated until a lather of a desirable consistency is produced. When the lather is completed the machine will automatically stop and the mixing tank forming a part thereof being more or less air tight, will preserve the lather without letting the same dry up. A

We desire it understood that, although we have shown and described a perferred embodiment of ourinvention, various details thereof ymay be varied, and the rinciple of our invention lembodied in other orms, without departing from the general scope of the invention.

Having now described our invention what we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. Incombination with a lather making machine, a powder hopper, a mixing vchamber, and means for feeding the powder from the hopper to the mixing chamber, said means also causing agitation of said hopper.

2. In combinatlon with a lather making machine, a powder container, a source of water supply, a mixing chamber, an agitator journaled in the bottom of said chamber, a motor for driving said agitator, and means for feeding the powder and water to said tank, a powder hopper, a mixing chamber,

means for automatically feeding the powder and water to the mixing chamber and means for discharging the mixture from the mixing chamber in any desired quantity.

5. In a lather mixing machine; a water tank, a powder hopper, a mixing chamber,

' means forautomatically feeding the powder and water to the mixing chamber simultaneously, an agitator in said chamber, and a timing member for regulating the duration of the mixing operation.

6. In combination with a lather mixing machine, a mixing chamber, means for feeding thereto material to be mixed, and a timing device for regulating the duration of the mixing operation.

7. In combination with a lathercmixing machine, a mixing chamber, means for feeding thereto material to bel mixed, a timing device for regulating the duration of the mixing operation, and means for setting the timing device so that it will operate in a given period of time.

8. In combination with a lather mixing machine, a mixing chamber, means for feeding thereto material to be mixed an agitator in said chamber and a piston in said chamber for discharging the mixture in any desired quantity.

9. In a lather mixing machine, .a main water tank, an auxiliary tank associated means for automatically moving the operating valve, and means whereby said operating valve may be moved independently of.

said automatic means.

l0. In a lather mixing machine, a mixing tank, means for feeding thereto materials to hc mixed, an operating lever, .a time pump adapted to engage said lever to draw the same down and start the operation of the machine, means for holding said lever down while the pump is returning to its extended position, amd means for releasing the lever to stop the operation of the machine when the pump has returned to its extended position.

11. In a lather mixing machine, a mixing tank, a powder hopper, a plunger operable beneath said hopper to feed powder to the tank, means for automatically operating said plunger, and a hand operated lever for Voperating said plunger independently of the automatic operating means.

12. In a lather mixing machine, a powder hopper, a Water supply, a mixing. chamber, means for feeding the water and powder to said chamber, means for shaking said hopper to loosen the powder, an agitator in the mixinng chamber, means for automatically starting the agitator when the water and powder are fed to the chamber, atiming device for automatically stopping said agitator after a lapse of time, and means in said mixing chamber for discharging the prepared lather.

In testimony whereof we hereunto affix our signatures.

FRANK ACKERMANN. MORRIS LANGHAUS. HERMAN GOULD. 

